Lawrence Block’s Hit Me. Stunning.

No other word comes to mind when discussing the world of hit man (John Paul) Keller. Mr. Block had me right here:

“And so Keller measured the overprint on this stamp, andfound himself in agreement with Mr. Bloch and Mr. Mueller.This was the straight goods, the genuine article. All he had todo to go home with it was outbid any other interestedcollectors. And he could do that, too, and without straining hisbudget or dipping into his capital.“But first he’d have to kill somebody.”

It’s perfect. This one paragraph is perfection. It embodies the essence, the sheer elegance of Lawrence Block’s storytelling– Killer (no pun intended) prose. Lawrence Block never wastes words as he weaves a compelling and sympathetic tale about his favorite kind of character, the anti-hero.

Just when I think Lawrence Block can’t get any better, it’s oops, he did it again! Gives me the shivers.

Keller is a hit man. Like Kit in Block’s luscious and deadly book about a female serial killer, Getting Off, Keller does bad things, but Block imbues the character with heart. He’s a thoughtful, sentimental kind of guy. Murderer though he may be, Keller makes me go all warm and fuzzy. And in Hit Me we meet and greet a fascinating supporting cast of characters.

I’m not a reviewer, I’m a reader and a writer. I don’t give away plot, so I’ll say this – when the book becomes available, pick it up. You won’t put Hit Me down until you’ve read the last sentence.

As an added bonus, in Hit Me, we actually get to spend a little time hanging out with the author, who is himself a philatelist, a stamp collector. Check out Lawrence Block’s bookstore and his Keller stamp collection right here.

The cover alone is lick-worthy. My ARC is seriously covered with drool.